Category Archives: Economics
Child Poverty in Romania
The good news: In a statistic on child poverty, Romania is just one spot behind the USA, one of the richest countries in the world. That’s a remarkable achievement for a country which had to rebuild its economy from scratch after the … Continue reading
Did you notice the Irony? (19) Davos 2015
Climate change is the no. 1 issue on the agenda of the World Economic Forum 2015 in Davos, Switzerland. The discussions about our planet will be led by people who are coming to Switzerland from all around the world. 1,700 private … Continue reading
Giving Presents
I don’t receive many presents. But then I give presents even less. Maybe it’s better that way. Receiving or giving presents can be a sad occasion. I remember the times when I was browsing book stores for hours, pondering what … Continue reading
Peak Oil
(Photographed on the island of Hiiumaa in Estonia.)
“1493” by Charles C. Mann
Zur deutschsprachigen Rezension. 1493 refers to the year after Christopher Columbus “discovered” America and as the second part of the title suggests, the book describes how Europe’s discovery of the Americas revolutionized trade, ecology and life on earth. That sounds … Continue reading
Easily Confused (40) Beheadings
People whom we call “barbaric” and “monsters” when they cut somebody’s head off: ISIS, IS, Al-Qaeda. People whom we do business with when they cut somebody’s head off: Saudi Arabia.
Is there a discount if I get MA and PhD at the same time?
You can tell that something is wrong with higher education when university degrees are advertised at “999 €” prices like bicycles or package holidays. (European University in Skopje, Macedonia.)
Football World Cup reveals hidden poverty
Poverty in Brazil won’t strike anyone as a surprise, but nobody will care as long as there is a Football World Cup going on. Also, this poverty is kind of compensated by the 2022 World Cup which will be held in Qatar, where … Continue reading
“Italia dei Valori” explain anti-German election campaign
“Europeans, not Germans,” the posters of the Italian party Italia dei Valori (“Italy of Values”) are screaming out in an effort to gain votes in the upcoming elections to the European Parliament. As I have pointed out already, I find that a … Continue reading
Frozen Assets
When you read about “frozen assets” in connection with economic sanctions, you may have been wondering how this process actually works. In February 2013 I could observe it myself in Nida, on the Lithuanian part of the Curonian Spit. There … Continue reading
The Happy Hermit 